The present invention relates in general to cigarette smoking inhibiting devices, and more particularly to small portable battery powered electronic devices for systematically inhibiting the behavior of cigarette smoking by administering faradic shock punishment and thereby inhibiting smoking by aversion therapy.
Following the release of the Surgeon General's Report in 1964 concerning the dangers of cigarette smoking, there has been much research conducted regarding the development of methods to extinguish cigarette smoking behavior. Various methods have been employed or suggested for inhibiting cigarette smoking or extinguishing cigarette smoking behavior, ranging from psychotherapy to various forms of behavior therapy. Within the area of types of theraby previously considered, there has been interest in electrical shock paired with smoking behavior. This is variously referred to as aversive therapy, electrotherapy, noxious stimulus presentation, and faradic shock punishment.
The currently used electric shock punishment method of treatment of smoking behavior is subject to a number of disadvantages as currently used. Treatment must be conducted within a clinical or experimental setting; it is only received on a scheduled basis, usually bi-weekly; treatment is limited within the experimental settings to only those individuals selected for an experiment, and is limited within the clinical setting to only those individuals who can economically afford such treatment; and as a practical measure such treatment is limited to urban areas. Antismoking clinics are few, and treatment by this method necessitates the use of large machines, and someone to administer the faradic shock punishment techniques.
As presently administered, the faradic shock punishment treatment most often consists of the sequence of (a) attaching electrodes to the patient's arms, hand, finger, etc., (b) adjusting the faradic shock instrument to a varying degree to establish the milliamperage to be dispensed, (c) testing the machine, (d) having the patient begin to smoke cigarettes, and (e) administering the faradic shock treatment while the patient is actually smoking. This treatment is limited in effectiveness in that punishment is only received within the clinic and no opportunity is given to avoid the punishment. Thus within the clinical or experimental setting, the individual cannot escape the electrical shock by refraining from the use of cigarettes. Nor does the frequency of administration of the shock treatment throughout any 24 hour period bear relation to the cigarette smoking frequency during that period. For these and other reasons, the methods previously suggested do not provide controlled and effective therapy for the general public.
An object of the present invention is the provision of a portable, battery operated case serving as a holder for a pack of cigarettes from which the cigarettes are dispensed by the user, together with an electrode or electrodes placed on the smoker's preferred smoking hand, finger or arm for administering a shock to the user after a selected delay period following manipulation of the device to dispense a cigarette. Means are provided for the user to open the device to obtain a cigarette and electronic circuits are provided to perform certain operational sequences including emission of an alarm sound to achieve certain conditioning in connection with the sequence of operation.
The subject smoking inhibiting device avoids the limitation of treatment to clinical or experimental settings, the treatment is automatically dispensed in relation to the cigarette smoking frequency throughout a 24 hour period, the treatment is available at minimal cost, and is available to all smokers regardless of geographic location. It is not contingent on administration of the treatment by a professional, there is no necessity to predetermine shock intensity or skin resistance, the duration of punishment is uniform and preset to occur in a fixed ratio following inception of smoking behavior, the electrode band placement may be on the preferred smoking arm or the index finger of the preferred smoking arm, and the device, due to its portability, can be carried at all times where smoking frequency occurs, with the assurance of automatically controlled therapy.
Other objects, advantages and capabilities of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings illustrating a preferred embodiment of the invention.